Landlord Tenant Guide - State of Michigan

her rental property, the landlord must use theeviction process—and it begins with propernotice. Before a court will enter a landlord’srequest for an Order of Eviction, the tenantmust have been given a proper eviction notice.Many times the rental problem can be fixedwith nothing more than the eviction notice. Forexample, if the tenant simply forgot to pay therent, the notice may simply serve as areminder—and once he or she pays the rent,the eviction process ends.The eviction notice may take many forms.It must state that the landlord intends to evictthe tenant, within a specified time (either 7 or30 days), because of a specified reason orproblem—otherwise, court action will be taken.The notice may allow the tenant time tocorrect the problem (like paying the rent, ifnonpayment of rent is the reason for eviction).The eviction notice MUST include certaininformation or the notice is not proper. Whilemany district courts provide standard evictionforms, a letter can accomplish the same aslong as it contains all of the following:■ Tenant’s name;■ Address or rental property description;■ Reason for the eviction;■ Time to take remedial action;■ Date; and■ Landlord’s signature. Each reason for eviction has a specificamount of time that MUST pass before thelandlord may commence a lawsuit—either 7 or30 days.A 7-DAY NOTICE is required for thefollowing reasons:a) Nonpayment of rent;b) Extensive and continuing physical injuryto property;c) Serious and continuing health hazard;d) Illegal drug activity and formal policereport filed (lease provision must allow fortermination).A 30-DAY NOTICE is required for thefollowing reasons:a) Violation of a lease provision and thelease allows for termination;b) Forceful entry OR peaceful entry, butforceful stay OR trespass;c) Holding over after natural expiration oflease term;d) “Just cause” for terminating tenant ofmobile home park;e) “Just cause” for terminating tenant ofgovernment-subsidized housing. Once the eviction notice is prepared, itmust be properly delivered to the tenant. Theeviction notice MUST be delivered:a) In person to the tenant, ORb) At the rental property, to a member ofthe tenant’s household—of suitable age—requesting that it be delivered to the tenant,ORc) By first-class mail, addressed to thetenant.If the notice is delivered personally, thetime of the notice begins to run the next day.If the notice is mailed, the time begins the nextmail delivery day (not a Sunday or holiday).The eviction notice is not the same as anOrder of Eviction. A tenant is not required tomove when the eviction notice expires—he orshe may have a valid defense to the landlord’sreason for eviction. Expiration of the 7- or 30-day time period only enables the landlord tofile a lawsuit.Remember: Only a court officer mayremove the tenant and tenant’s personalitems from the rental property—and onlyunder court order. If some agreement or understanding cannototherwise be worked out by the parties, and ifthe eviction notice has been properly deliveredand the 7- or 30-day time period has passed,the landlord may commence a lawsuit—knownas a Summary Proceedings action. This sectionwill outline how the landlord may bring anaction, and what the tenant can expect whenbeing sued.The Paperwork. The paperwork necessaryto begin a lawsuit includes the following:a) Complaint;b) Copy of the Notice of Eviction (attachedto the Complaint);